FPU (Fluorinated Polyurethane) coatings are extremely efficient, high performance coatings that can provide substantial intermediate and long term cost savings through reduction in preventative maintenance and repair costs.

Forming a virtually impenetrable molecular barrier, FPU prevents water vapour and oxygen from reaching the substrate, stopping corrosion before it starts. FPU coating products possess a number of other, highly desirable characteristics, notable among them, stability, durability, flexibility and chemical resistance. 

FPU coatings are specially formulated products designed for heavy and light industrial applications. Multiple uses have been found in heavy industrial areas such as oil and gas refining, petrochemical storage and distribution, water storage (including desalinization operations),

FPU coatings currently consist of approximately ten topcoat variants that are individually manufactured to meet customer requirements. Coatings can be manufactured in any color or tinted from bases. Colors are normally manufactured to order as only clear and white are kept in stock to ensure maximum shelf life. The manufacturing process is deliberate, consistent and according to strict specification to guarantee the utmost quality control in batch processing.

Although FPU coatings represent a new, state of the art product, they are direct descendants of the highly innovative Fluoro Polyurethane coatings invented in the early seventies by scientists at the US Navy Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C. These coatings underwent over twenty years of research, development and successful testing at the laboratory and in the field. They were considered so effective as a corrosion blocker that in the eighties the Navy selected the FPU developed by NRL as the mandatory immersion coating for all Navy petroleum storage tanks. As testimony to the effectiveness of the reformulated product, in 1996 the Navy chose to discontinue use of the original NRL FPU in its POL tanks and to adopt  PC-5 immersion topcoat as their new standard.

FPU coatings represent a true breakthrough in industrial coating technology. More and more professional coatings experts are concluding that FPU topcoats represent the most effective anti corrosion sealant the industrial coating industry has to offer, the ultimate polymeric material.

Background

It has long been known that fluorinated polymers possess many properties that are superior to their hydrocarbon counterparts. Among these properties are the ability to better resist heat, light, and chemical attack -- all things which cause protective coatings to fail. In addition, fluoropolymers are known to be hydrophobic and oleo phobic and to exhibit low surface energy, a quality which makes such coatings highly resistant to soiling.

The disadvantage of fluorinated polymers is that under normal circumstances they are expensive and difficult to apply as a surface coating. Generally they also require high curing temperatures and are hard to manufacture. To a significant degree these disadvantages were resolved by the scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory when, in the early seventies, they created their own unique set of fluorinated epoxy, polyurethane and acrylic polymers. During the seventies and eighties these new coatings were extensively tested with exceptional results.

The new fluorinated coatings, in particular the fluorinated polyurethane, were convenient and relatively easy to apply, adhered well to standard primers and intermediate coatings and cured properly under ambient conditions. They also exhibited extraordinary wetting properties, enabling such additives as PTFE to be successfully held in suspension. This characteristic further increased the flexibility and applicability of the new coating.

The NRL developed coatings, and these derivative FPU coatings, are unique for a number of reasons. As noted above they are oleo phobic and hydrophobic, they shed oil and water very easily. In addition to their corrosion preventing attributes, these characteristics make them particularly attractive as the coating of choice for the interior of oil and chemical storage tanks. With regard to corrosion prevention, these coatings exhibit permeability two orders of magnitude lower than epoxy and one order of magnitude lower than ordinary polyurethane. The fact that water vapour and oxygen cannot penetrate to the metal substrate eliminates the principal cause of corrosion. Due to the stability of the fluorine atom these coatings are also less chemically reactive than non-fluorinated coatings.

One of the first applications of the NRL formula was in 1973 in the environmental test chamber operated for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at Calspan Corp. The chamber was used to test pollutants and chemical reactions under intense UV light conditions. A highly resistant coating was needed in the chamber due to the nature of the test sources which included automotive exhaust, geothermal exhaust, chemical weapons by products, waste water and power plant emissions. The original coating has lasted for well over twenty years without signs of deterioration.

Recognizing that the NRL fluorinated polyurethane possessed great commercial promise, a license to produce the coating commercially was obtained from the U.S. Navy. Subsequently, with the help of the scientists at NRL and others in the industry, it became possible to reformulate the coating, retaining the outstanding characteristics that the NRL inventors had produced, while significantly lowering production costs, the last obstacle to commercial introduction of the new product. Thus FPU coatings were born.

Product Description and Characteristics

FPU coatings main ingredient, the base polyol, is synthesized from highly fluorinated diols. The resulting high molecular weight material (with a solids content as high as 97%) is linked with tri isocyanate for UV stability as well as to enable convenient pot life and curing times. Additionally, in those variations designed for petro-chemical immersion applications, finely ground Teflon particles are suspended in the highly fluorinated resin to impart added chemical resistance and hydrophobic qualities. The chemistry is complex but the result is a high quality coating that will outperform any similar coating on the market today.

A two component product, consisting of resin and activator, the FPU coatings are available in clear, which can be applied successfully over most painted surfaces, or, as noted above, in any colour. Available in a variety of gloss types, the coating is applied by conventional spray gun, airless spray (recommended) or simply by roller or brush.

FPU coatings can be applied and cured under ambient conditions. They adhere particularly well to the primers recommended by us as part of our anti-corrosion coating system. They also adhere to most conventional epoxy, alkyd and polyurethane primers. In addition, FPU products adhere well to themselves, even after a full cure, a quality that allows for easy repair of damaged topcoat.

FPU Coatings have the following properties:

Weather resistant: Samples of the original NRL formula have shown no loss in gloss or performance after 7 years of continuous exposure to the elements.

Chemically resistant: Essentially a non-reactive coating. Test results show FPU coatings to be resistant to virtually all industrial chemicals except sulphuric acid.

Anti Corrosive: The coating virtually prevents oxygen and water vapour from reaching the metal substrate, thereby preventing the formation of corrosion.

Hydrophobic: The topcoat sheds water, which will bead and run off.

Oleo phobic: Petrochemicals cannot readily adhere to the surface.

Organophobic: FPU coatings contain no nutrients on which marine organisms can feed. Although such organisms can adhere to hull surfaces coated with PC products, they can readily be removed in most instances. A specific range of marine coatings is available.

UV Resistant: The coating is tolerant of prolonged, intense UV exposure. Testing and practical application has shown it is 90% fade resistant.

Low Surface Energy: Surface energies below 18 dynes produce a surface that is highly resistant to soiling, making the coating exceptionally suitable for anti graffiti applications.

Low refractive index: A refractive index lower than 1.43 makes the coating appropriate for optical fibre applications.

Immunity to Electrical Breakdown: Its non conductive nature and virtual immunity to electrical breakdown make the coating attractive as a conformal coating for circuit boards and other electronic components.

Environmentally Friendly: This series of coatings meets or exceeds CARBS and EPA environmental standards, including California VOC requirements.

Potable Water Certified: PC-15 coating is certified for use in potable water applications, including valves, pipes and storage tanks. The product has been tested and certified by the Australian National Water Quality Centre.

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